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Dead #3
Dead: Fortunes & Failures
Steve has seen the worst in himself...and others. Now, it seems that zombies aren't the only threat to the lives of his companions. Will he lose those he loves to the walking dead...or a murderer?
Kevin is the last geek standing, and a reunion with an old acquaintance puts him back in charge of a group of survivors. Will he fail in the one thing he thought he was prepared for? Or will he find his redemption?
Juan struggles with Mackenzie's past...a scientist tries to create Eden with an unlikely Eve...and a young girl struggles to keep her sanity at the hands of a monster far worse than the ones gathered outside the walls of her family estate.
Kevin is the last geek standing, and a reunion with an old acquaintance puts him back in charge of a group of survivors. Will he fail in the one thing he thought he was prepared for? Or will he find his redemption?
Juan struggles with Mackenzie's past...a scientist tries to create Eden with an unlikely Eve...and a young girl struggles to keep her sanity at the hands of a monster far worse than the ones gathered outside the walls of her family estate.
338 pages, Paperback
First published December 15, 2011
45 people are currently reading
187 people want to read
About the author
T.W. Brown
96 books303 followersTucked away in the Pacific Northwest with my wife Denise, a Border Collie named Aoife, a guitar collection, and an increasing number of aquariums sporting a variety of fish (cichlids are my new favorites), I live for football season when I can cheer on the Oregon Ducks and be disappointed by my Seattle Seahawks once again. I am a fan of Cookie Monster, KISS, and Dr. Who (along with most things British).
As a person who always dreamed of writing as well as one completely enthralled by all things zombie, it is hard to believe that I never once considered writing in the genre. It is true. I wanted to be more “mainstream”. The first novel I actually wrote is titled Dakota (as Todd Brown). It is about a pair of DEA types tossed back in time to just prior to the start of the Civil War. They are in Charleston, South Carolina, and one of them is an African-American.
The zombie thing really started when I wrote a short for a college Creative Writing class. The teacher, Ms. Bose, pulled me up and told me I had an obvious love for the subject and a real talent for the style. I decided to give it a shot.
The first thing I cobbled together was Zomblog. I wrote it as a warm up for the project I had brewing in the back of my mind. It is a journal account of the apocalypse. The funny thing is that it was never intended to be published. A few things happened and it ended up being presented to me as a gift in book format by my wife for a Christmas present. There was something I will never forget about holding the copy of that book in my hand the first time.
Because it gained a readership, and those readers asked for more, I made it a trilogy (Zomblog, Zomblog II, and Zomblog: The Final Entry). It is also because of those fans that I have returned to the Zomblog universe and just released the sixth (and FINAL) book in the series on Halloween of 2013: Zomblog: Snoe's Journey. I freely admit that I will sellout my plans to write what the fans ask for.
I really want my DEAD series to be what I am known for, and in the last year, it has really taken off. However, I will say that with the release of the fourth book in the DEAD series (DEAD: Winter), the numbers started to pick up beyond my wildest dreams.
The DEAD series (DEAD: The Ugly Beginning, DEAD: Revelations, and DEAD: Fortunes & Failures, DEAD: Winter, DEAD: Siege & Survival, DEAD: Confrontation, DEAD: Reborn) is scheduled to be a 12 part epic series.
It is told in three rotating chapters. One is from the first person perspective of Steve Hobart, a man thrust into the role of leader for a group of survivors struggling to keep alive. One chapter follows a group of four self-professed zombie “geeks” who initially believe that the zombie apocalypse would be fun and soon discover that it is nothing like the movies. The third of the rotating chapters is called “Vignettes” and is a series of snapshots from all around the world. Some of the vignettes are single chapter episodes, others are continuing threads that carry on for several chapters. A few are merged into the Steve story or the Geek story line.
Last year,I began my horror/comedy series, "That Ghoul Ava" and have found it to be my new guilty pleasure.
My blog can be found at:
http://twbrown.blogspot.com/
You can contact him at:
twbrown.maydecpub@gmail.com
You can follow him on twitter @maydecpub and on Facebook under Todd Brown, Author TW Brown, and also under May December Publications.
Book Links:
DEAD
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-The-Ugly-B...
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Revelation...
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Fortunes-F...
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Winter-ebo...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Winter-TW-...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Siege-Surv...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Confrontat...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Reborn-TW-...
As a person who always dreamed of writing as well as one completely enthralled by all things zombie, it is hard to believe that I never once considered writing in the genre. It is true. I wanted to be more “mainstream”. The first novel I actually wrote is titled Dakota (as Todd Brown). It is about a pair of DEA types tossed back in time to just prior to the start of the Civil War. They are in Charleston, South Carolina, and one of them is an African-American.
The zombie thing really started when I wrote a short for a college Creative Writing class. The teacher, Ms. Bose, pulled me up and told me I had an obvious love for the subject and a real talent for the style. I decided to give it a shot.
The first thing I cobbled together was Zomblog. I wrote it as a warm up for the project I had brewing in the back of my mind. It is a journal account of the apocalypse. The funny thing is that it was never intended to be published. A few things happened and it ended up being presented to me as a gift in book format by my wife for a Christmas present. There was something I will never forget about holding the copy of that book in my hand the first time.
Because it gained a readership, and those readers asked for more, I made it a trilogy (Zomblog, Zomblog II, and Zomblog: The Final Entry). It is also because of those fans that I have returned to the Zomblog universe and just released the sixth (and FINAL) book in the series on Halloween of 2013: Zomblog: Snoe's Journey. I freely admit that I will sellout my plans to write what the fans ask for.
I really want my DEAD series to be what I am known for, and in the last year, it has really taken off. However, I will say that with the release of the fourth book in the DEAD series (DEAD: Winter), the numbers started to pick up beyond my wildest dreams.
The DEAD series (DEAD: The Ugly Beginning, DEAD: Revelations, and DEAD: Fortunes & Failures, DEAD: Winter, DEAD: Siege & Survival, DEAD: Confrontation, DEAD: Reborn) is scheduled to be a 12 part epic series.
It is told in three rotating chapters. One is from the first person perspective of Steve Hobart, a man thrust into the role of leader for a group of survivors struggling to keep alive. One chapter follows a group of four self-professed zombie “geeks” who initially believe that the zombie apocalypse would be fun and soon discover that it is nothing like the movies. The third of the rotating chapters is called “Vignettes” and is a series of snapshots from all around the world. Some of the vignettes are single chapter episodes, others are continuing threads that carry on for several chapters. A few are merged into the Steve story or the Geek story line.
Last year,I began my horror/comedy series, "That Ghoul Ava" and have found it to be my new guilty pleasure.
My blog can be found at:
http://twbrown.blogspot.com/
You can contact him at:
twbrown.maydecpub@gmail.com
You can follow him on twitter @maydecpub and on Facebook under Todd Brown, Author TW Brown, and also under May December Publications.
Book Links:
DEAD
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-The-Ugly-B...
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Revelation...
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Fortunes-F...
http://www.amazon.com/Dead-Winter-ebo...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Winter-TW-...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Siege-Surv...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Confrontat...
http://www.amazon.com/DEAD-Reborn-TW-...
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
July 24, 2013
After I finish one I HAVE to get the next in the series. Honestly Todd Brown's "Dead" series is one of the top in the genre. The characters are exceptional & the situations remain believable. It's easy to maintain interest because of the way the chapters are set up, almost like individual tales for each character group. I will keep reading these and the Zomblog books as long as Brown keeps writing.
April 9, 2015
ABR's full DEAD: Fortunes & Failures audiobook review and many others can be found at Audiobook Reviewer.
First thoughts about the cover of Dead: Fortunes & Failures? Zombie dog and a little zombie girl… K. Fighting the urge to back away slowly. Little zombie kiddies are creepy as hell. Either that zombie girl is curled around the zombie dog, or she’s part of the dog. Either way, that’s creepy as hell. My zombie curiosity is peeked, must delve into this story.
This book is several stories on a series of rotating chapters. One of the main characters in one of the stories is Kevin. He is one of the absolutely perfect persons to have with you in a zombie apocalypse. He is strong, resourceful, very smart, and very logical. Without him lots of people probably would have died early in the story. He is a bit of a geek, and that is a good thing. Absolutely one of my favorite characters in this book.
The character I’m rooting for the zombies to get fast is Garrett. He is a vile, cruel, and evil person. If there is anyone that zombies need to off in a horrible fashion, it would be him. He show the lows that some of humanity would sink to without law and order. It’s scary to think about people like him existing, but they do. They wear their masks well. I fear for if something happens and people like him are able to take their mask of humanity off to show their true monstrous natures within.
This story starts from a prior stopping point of this series. It starts strong and goes straight to an odd queasy icky factor that helps bring the story alive. After that it slows down for a bit before it picks back up with a vengeance. The characters are so well written that you get emotionally invested in their lives, and in some cases, their deaths.
I really like the Narrator Andrew McFerrin’s voice. His accents and voices for the characters help draw the listener into the heart of the story. I greatly enjoyed how he helped bring them to life. This book is part of the Dead series by TW Brown. It is thirteen hours and thirty-four minutes long. Warning – Not for those who scare easily. This book is full of zombies, blood, guts, gore, awesome scenes, some horrible people, and a helluva lot of crazy cool stories.
I was left feeling very happy we are not living in an apocalyptic dying world. Dodging the dangers of a zombie scratch and bite would be horrible enough, but dealing with the worst of humanity would suck the most. This book rocks. It keeps you hooked from start till end. Definitely worth getting more of this series.
Audiobook provided for review by the author.
First thoughts about the cover of Dead: Fortunes & Failures? Zombie dog and a little zombie girl… K. Fighting the urge to back away slowly. Little zombie kiddies are creepy as hell. Either that zombie girl is curled around the zombie dog, or she’s part of the dog. Either way, that’s creepy as hell. My zombie curiosity is peeked, must delve into this story.
This book is several stories on a series of rotating chapters. One of the main characters in one of the stories is Kevin. He is one of the absolutely perfect persons to have with you in a zombie apocalypse. He is strong, resourceful, very smart, and very logical. Without him lots of people probably would have died early in the story. He is a bit of a geek, and that is a good thing. Absolutely one of my favorite characters in this book.
The character I’m rooting for the zombies to get fast is Garrett. He is a vile, cruel, and evil person. If there is anyone that zombies need to off in a horrible fashion, it would be him. He show the lows that some of humanity would sink to without law and order. It’s scary to think about people like him existing, but they do. They wear their masks well. I fear for if something happens and people like him are able to take their mask of humanity off to show their true monstrous natures within.
This story starts from a prior stopping point of this series. It starts strong and goes straight to an odd queasy icky factor that helps bring the story alive. After that it slows down for a bit before it picks back up with a vengeance. The characters are so well written that you get emotionally invested in their lives, and in some cases, their deaths.
I really like the Narrator Andrew McFerrin’s voice. His accents and voices for the characters help draw the listener into the heart of the story. I greatly enjoyed how he helped bring them to life. This book is part of the Dead series by TW Brown. It is thirteen hours and thirty-four minutes long. Warning – Not for those who scare easily. This book is full of zombies, blood, guts, gore, awesome scenes, some horrible people, and a helluva lot of crazy cool stories.
I was left feeling very happy we are not living in an apocalyptic dying world. Dodging the dangers of a zombie scratch and bite would be horrible enough, but dealing with the worst of humanity would suck the most. This book rocks. It keeps you hooked from start till end. Definitely worth getting more of this series.
Audiobook provided for review by the author.
December 12, 2016
Read Kindle version May 2013 and just finished listening to the audio version. Rating remains a 5. Narrator is excellent. Mr. Brown continues to pour on the action, and wrings every drop of emotion from each of the characters. I'm glad to be rid of Garrett. Absolutely hated him. Not so happy about what happened with Kristen but then again, I'm not so sure anything else would have worked. She did get to be in control of her destiny on her terms though. Sometimes that's all we can ask for.
Happy to be able to read about all the other characters, their successes and failures. It gives my heart a workout at times visualizing everything they're going through.
Happy to be able to read about all the other characters, their successes and failures. It gives my heart a workout at times visualizing everything they're going through.
July 15, 2012
This book took off right away from the first book. It didn't take very long to connect with all the characters again.
Mr. Brown has an amazing talent for building characters and then adding challenges. The zombies are not the forefront of the story, It's the people and how they adapt and cope. And sometimes the the bad guys aren't zombies! I really love these books and can't wait to get my grubby little fingers on all the rest of the series! Plus you can't beat the price!
Mr. Brown has an amazing talent for building characters and then adding challenges. The zombies are not the forefront of the story, It's the people and how they adapt and cope. And sometimes the the bad guys aren't zombies! I really love these books and can't wait to get my grubby little fingers on all the rest of the series! Plus you can't beat the price!
June 28, 2012
I'm so sad that this was the last book. I wanted it to keep going and going!
January 8, 2013
And another great book that I counldn't stop reading!! At this rate if T.W. Brown write's it I will read it!! I don't know what else to say to do the series justice!!
September 28, 2012
Mr. Brown keeps the suspense in the third installment of the dead series. Love love love these books.
September 11, 2023
While still amusing and pretty good for zombie lore I feel like the series had mellowed into a 3 star category. There are some twists and turns, like a familiar rollercoaster.
Read
April 21, 2020Why are the zombies drawn to the bunkers? They can’t see or hear the people inside so why horse there.
Of course everyone is cis and het and 99% of the remaining population is white and most women are depicted as weak and major whiners.
Why make a big deal about chad being a pedophile when they were doing the same thing?
It’s sneaked not snuck
We get incredibly detail about dead bodies, mangling, rape, and torture but the author chickens out with langue and resorts to “heck?”
The captain tells slider he could give two shits... it’s “couldn’t” give shits
It’s the same scenes over and over again spread out among the same groups that seem so similar it can be hard to remember who is who or who is with which group. There’s so many nonsense scenes and the same arguments that you can skip large swaths and still feel like you’ve picked up where you left off. This entire series could be consolidated into one lengthy concise book but, worst case, could be a duology. Alllllllllll the rest of it is just junk filler. I mean the author has so many characters crammed into the story that he even started to repeat names because we have a chad and a Thad. Seriously? Not only that but then he just keeps introducing not just more characters but entirely new groups and it’s not like they’re any different from the previously existing ones.
What’s the big deal talia called him daddy. It’s incredibly racist that he didn’t give a shit every time she called him papi but the second she says daddy in English he’s all excited.
It’s “couldn’t careless” not “could care less”
The narrator needs to learn how to say “clozapine.”
Of course everyone is cis and het and 99% of the remaining population is white and most women are depicted as weak and major whiners.
Why make a big deal about chad being a pedophile when they were doing the same thing?
It’s sneaked not snuck
We get incredibly detail about dead bodies, mangling, rape, and torture but the author chickens out with langue and resorts to “heck?”
The captain tells slider he could give two shits... it’s “couldn’t” give shits
It’s the same scenes over and over again spread out among the same groups that seem so similar it can be hard to remember who is who or who is with which group. There’s so many nonsense scenes and the same arguments that you can skip large swaths and still feel like you’ve picked up where you left off. This entire series could be consolidated into one lengthy concise book but, worst case, could be a duology. Alllllllllll the rest of it is just junk filler. I mean the author has so many characters crammed into the story that he even started to repeat names because we have a chad and a Thad. Seriously? Not only that but then he just keeps introducing not just more characters but entirely new groups and it’s not like they’re any different from the previously existing ones.
What’s the big deal talia called him daddy. It’s incredibly racist that he didn’t give a shit every time she called him papi but the second she says daddy in English he’s all excited.
It’s “couldn’t careless” not “could care less”
The narrator needs to learn how to say “clozapine.”
December 2, 2019
11/27/19 I'm enjoying this book MUCH more than book 2. The raping/womanizing has been toned down considerably! Surprisingly, there is a VERY touching moment in here with Emily that actually brought tears to my eyes. I think because after all the deaths and evil happenings, it was a pure moment of humanity. I'm still only about 2/3 of the way through, but if I don't annotate "during", I'll forget about it at the end.
12/02/19 Ok, finally finished. Shaw's revelation kinda through me for a loop. I was NOT expecting that type of honesty from him, and found myself ALMOST (but not really) sympathizing with him. It was like he snapped, and it all went downhill from there. I was glad when he was dealt with, but it was very anti-climatic, so I don't feel that justice was truly served. Now Garret. Sigh. I'm disappointed that he went as far as he did with Kirsten, and a small part of me was hoping for the "light at then end of the tunnel" moment for her. sadly, it never happened. In the end she did become "free" on her own terms, I just wish that she would've been able to make Garret suffer at her hands the way he did her. Though he got what he deserved in the end.
On to book 4
12/02/19 Ok, finally finished. Shaw's revelation kinda through me for a loop. I was NOT expecting that type of honesty from him, and found myself ALMOST (but not really) sympathizing with him. It was like he snapped, and it all went downhill from there. I was glad when he was dealt with, but it was very anti-climatic, so I don't feel that justice was truly served. Now Garret. Sigh. I'm disappointed that he went as far as he did with Kirsten, and a small part of me was hoping for the "light at then end of the tunnel" moment for her. sadly, it never happened. In the end she did become "free" on her own terms, I just wish that she would've been able to make Garret suffer at her hands the way he did her. Though he got what he deserved in the end.
On to book 4
October 10, 2018
TW Brown’s Zomblog series started me down the Zombie road, and The Dead series does not disappoint! I’m a HUGE TW brown fan and look forward to experiencing every one of his stories. The Dead series is action packed, horrifying, tragic, and just so freaking realistic. Almost impossible to put down, on more than on occasion I snuck out to the kitchen in the middle of the night to read a couple more chapters. Just when you think you've seen humanity at our absolute worst, we kick it up a notch and get far worse! I was totally bummed when it ended, but then I remembered the Snapshot series and immediately perked -up. READ THIS SERIES!!!! Highly Recommend!!!
June 18, 2020
The stories seem to get better and better each book and we can see the whole world progressing in a way that makes sense. We see how certain struggles are common despite different areas of the world and how the characters reacted differently to similar situations.
I cannot forget to mention Kirsten, that is one of the most unfortunate characters (throughout literature), having to endure unimaginable pain and humiliation. It's a very sad POV and somehow seeing Garreth's POV as well made me feel for her even more.
I cannot forget to mention Kirsten, that is one of the most unfortunate characters (throughout literature), having to endure unimaginable pain and humiliation. It's a very sad POV and somehow seeing Garreth's POV as well made me feel for her even more.
February 1, 2019
Brutal and Satisfying
Book 3 Fortune and Failures by TW Brown has been an emotional rollercoaster from the first chapter to the last chapter,this is a zombie book that has everything from Gore,suspense, Terror,thrills,chills and above all a whole lot of heart. TW Browne makes you care about these characters, you can't help but to continue to read, if you're into zombie fiction and you haven't started this series you do not know what you're missing
Book 3 Fortune and Failures by TW Brown has been an emotional rollercoaster from the first chapter to the last chapter,this is a zombie book that has everything from Gore,suspense, Terror,thrills,chills and above all a whole lot of heart. TW Browne makes you care about these characters, you can't help but to continue to read, if you're into zombie fiction and you haven't started this series you do not know what you're missing
April 20, 2019
T W Brown's Dead:Fortunes and Failures is the third book in a series about a zombie apocalypse and different perspectives of it. It continues in same style as the other books by giving the reader multiple perspectives of the going ons. I love the directions it's all going in. Its well written, well developed and highly entertaining- utterly addictive. I
Narrator does a fantastic job bringing the story to life. Really brought the characters' personalities out. Love it!
Narrator does a fantastic job bringing the story to life. Really brought the characters' personalities out. Love it!
August 5, 2020
Great readoves along
September 4, 2020
Meeting new characters and losing others, but still enjoying the journey.
January 2, 2024
This story is so detailed. The books roll straight into each other so no time jumpers which I love.
February 9, 2015
These books would be SO MUCH BETTER if they were only about Steve's group. I'm only reading the series because of him, to be quite honest. At least the whole "women get raped over and over again" thing seems to have come to an end.
However, I couldn't care less about Juan, Mackenzie, the others there (JoJo, Keith... random people?), Chad's annoying daughter, Kevin, Aleah, Peter and I'm sure I'm forgetting others. I do have a somewhat soft spot for Heather and the sisters, and also for Chad, but... not enough to care about their stories all that much. I really wanted to believe that Kirsten would find a way to get to Steve's group, but... oh, well.
All that said, this book dragged a lot. It was slow and most of the characters are too annoying. I'm a little worried about Emily and honestly don't need more from Jennifer, the zombie.
Also: Heather and her friends, Kirsten, Kimberly, Ruth, Shari, their mother (whose name I cannot remember anymore), Kimberly, Jennifer, Jane, Mackenzie, Margaret. Other countless, nameless women. All of them were sexually abused. That's A LOT of rape for one story. I'm more than disgusted that someone wrote so much of this, over and over again.
I hope the next book has more Steve. He's the saving grace.
However, I couldn't care less about Juan, Mackenzie, the others there (JoJo, Keith... random people?), Chad's annoying daughter, Kevin, Aleah, Peter and I'm sure I'm forgetting others. I do have a somewhat soft spot for Heather and the sisters, and also for Chad, but... not enough to care about their stories all that much. I really wanted to believe that Kirsten would find a way to get to Steve's group, but... oh, well.
All that said, this book dragged a lot. It was slow and most of the characters are too annoying. I'm a little worried about Emily and honestly don't need more from Jennifer, the zombie.
Also: Heather and her friends, Kirsten, Kimberly, Ruth, Shari, their mother (whose name I cannot remember anymore), Kimberly, Jennifer, Jane, Mackenzie, Margaret. Other countless, nameless women. All of them were sexually abused. That's A LOT of rape for one story. I'm more than disgusted that someone wrote so much of this, over and over again.
I hope the next book has more Steve. He's the saving grace.
November 13, 2015
This is a review for books 1-3 of the Dead series. The series is great as it follows the lives of 3 different groups and a few random side stories. Yes, as others have said there are a lot of characters to follow and it does get challenging at times to remember who is who but that’s what makes it interesting. What I like most about this series are the characters are believable enough to make you either root for them or pray for their death. Furthermore, TW Brown’s zompoc world is dark and brutal if that tickles your fancy. I’ll probably take a break from the series, but I will return to it.
September 26, 2013
I really love this book
May 14, 2013
Saving review for current book I am reading which is Number 5 in series I think. Will say I am loving it and have read the first 4 books in 3 days!
March 14, 2014
Loved it
Great series to read. Ride along with the characters as they learn to survive in a world gone mad. Where the good are good and the bad are better.
Great series to read. Ride along with the characters as they learn to survive in a world gone mad. Where the good are good and the bad are better.
February 10, 2015
Yet another great addition to the "Dead" series!
June 26, 2015
Three and a half stars. The book series and the writing are steadily improving. Still having a hard time tracking so many characters.
July 11, 2014
Fairly interesting, but not enough to hold me in this series.
October 9, 2015
great read great series.
Read
April 8, 2018Can't stop reading this series
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews